Recent
Blog Post
3/29/2012
By Brian Stedge-Stroud
News that shouldn’t surprise anyone: former insurance executive and current State Senator Juan Vargas has endorsed billionaire insurance baron George Joseph’s ballot measure to surcharge drivers by as much as 40%. The endorsement continues Senator Vargas’s rich history of putting insurance companies first and his constituents second.
While in the Assembly, Vargas chaired...
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News Story
3/11/2012
A billionaire insurance executive is spending $8 million on a November ballot measure to undermine a key consumer protection that has saved California drivers more than $62 billion since 1988.
Common sense leads to one basic question: When has a billionaire insurance executive spent $8 million just to save drivers money?
The real aim of the ballot initiative, sponsored by Mercury Insurance...
Blog Post
3/6/2012
By Brian Stedge-Stroud
A billionaire insurance baron who has made a name for himself as an antagonist of justice, fairness and consumer protections has earned, well, bought, the California Republican Party’s endorsement for his ballot measure. Mercury Insurance Chairman George Joseph has already spent more than $8 million just to get on the November ballot, so what’s another million if it boosts his plan to...
Blog Post
3/29/2012
By Brian Stedge-Stroud
News that shouldn’t surprise anyone: former insurance executive and current State Senator Juan Vargas has endorsed billionaire insurance baron George Joseph’s ballot measure to surcharge drivers by as much as 40%. The endorsement continues Senator Vargas’s rich history of putting insurance companies first and his constituents second.
While in the Assembly, Vargas chaired...
Blog Post
3/6/2012
By Brian Stedge-Stroud
A billionaire insurance baron who has made a name for himself as an antagonist of justice, fairness and consumer protections has earned, well, bought, the California Republican Party’s endorsement for his ballot measure. Mercury Insurance Chairman George Joseph has already spent more than $8 million just to get on the November ballot, so what’s another million if it boosts his plan to...
Blog Post
2/16/2012
By Brian Stedge-Stroud
Good Drivers Penalized $1,000/Year
The billionaire insurance baron-backed ballot measure to surcharge millions of California drivers by 40% has released their financial disclosure report according to the California Secretary of State. The ballot measure has reported spending $2.1 million on petition costs, consultants, and office expenses. The ballot measure will reprise the company...
News Release
2/24/2012
Brian Stedge - Consumer Watchdog Campaign & Richard Holober - Consumer Federation of California
San Francisco, CA -- Billionaire insurance baron George Joseph, Chairman of Mercury Insurance, is attempting to buy the endorsement of the California Republican State Party for his November insurance ballot measure. The insurance executive and “Forbes 400” billionaire is the party’s largest donor for the past two years. In 2010, when the Republican Party endorsed Joseph...
News Release
1/19/2012
Brian Stedge
Santa Monica, CA – The billionaire insurance baron-backed ballot measure to surcharge millions of California drivers by 40% has qualified for the November 2012 ballot, according to the California Secretary of State. Mercury Insurance Chairman George Joseph, who has already contributed over $8 million to the ballot measure, will reprise the company’s previous effort to enact auto...
News Release
12/21/2011
By Brian Stedge & Doug Heller
Santa Monica, CA -- Mercury Insurance is seeking permission to raise auto insurance rates by $89 million. At the same time, the company’s Chairman George Joseph is spending $8 million on a 2012 ballot initiative that insurance billionaire claims will give “discounts” to some drivers. The proposed initiative is nearly identical to Mercury’s failed 2010 measure,...
News Story
3/11/2012
A billionaire insurance executive is spending $8 million on a November ballot measure to undermine a key consumer protection that has saved California drivers more than $62 billion since 1988.
Common sense leads to one basic question: When has a billionaire insurance executive spent $8 million just to save drivers money?
The real aim of the ballot initiative, sponsored by Mercury Insurance...
News Story
2/10/2012
In California, the rule of politics is sometimes “one man, one ballot proposition.”
Pretty much by himself, billionaire George Joseph is financing an initiative governing insurance rates.
As the chairman and largest stockholder of Mercury General Corporation, an insurance company that does most of its business in California, Joseph has deep pockets. Forbes estimated his net worth at $...
News Story
1/27/2012
UPDATE, Jan. 27, 2012: Mercury Insurance provided this response to questions about its record.
The 90-year-old billionaire chairman of Mercury Insurance just won’t give up.
George Joseph gave $8.2 million to put an initiative on the November ballot that supporters say would lower car insurance rates for consumers who maintain continuous coverage. His Los Angeles-based company spent $15.8...
Video
12/21/2011
New Video: Insurance Billionaire George Joseph Is The Grinch;
Christmas Eve Attack of The 1% Exposed
(Santa Monica, CA) Consumer Watchdog Campaign has released a new video showing the 375th richest man in America, 90-year old insurance baron George Joseph, as the Grinch who stole Christmas.
The video points to the devious attack by the Chairman of Mercury Insurance on auto insurance customers...
Video
12/20/2011
Consumer Watchdog's Doug Heller discusses why Mercury insurance is trying to get an extra $89 million out of their California policy holders.
Video
8/8/2011
Billionaire George Joseph, chairman of insurer Mercury General Corp. and tied as the 375th richest man in America, has launched a ballot initiative claiming to offer drivers a discount. What his ballot initiative really does is surcharge those who didn't have insurance because they had not been driving or are in the growing ranks of the long-term unemployed. They would have to...
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